Witnesses Unravel Mass Murder Mystery That Could Ruin Putin

[Jilly_in_VA]

It was just before 5 a.m. local time when two pickup trucks allegedly carrying mercenaries from the Russian Wagner Group pulled up in front of Zaza and five other men, who were patrolling the areas near the Chimbolo gold mine in the Central African Republic.

The vigilantes—who are among hundreds of men drawn from the Chimbolo village to prevent hoodlums and robbers from attacking the buildings and electrical installations in the high-crime area—were on the street leading to the gold mine near the eastern town of Bambari on Sunday. They described the men in the pickup trucks as “white soldiers” who were dressed in the same military regalia often worn by the Russian mercenary group.

“One white soldier in one of the vehicles came down from the car and ordered us to leave the area,” Zaza, the leader of the vigilante unit who prefers to be identified by his nickname, told The Daily Beast. “He said he and his colleagues were going to be responsible for securing the area.”

About 10 minutes later, the vigilantes said they heard a loud explosion at the Chimbolo gold mine, manned by Chinese workers after opening last week. They said the explosion was followed by gunshot sounds that lasted for more than an hour. “We could even hear the sounds of people screaming at the gold mine,” said Zaza. “It sounded as if they were crying for help.”

At past 6 a.m., according to the vigilantes, the same vehicles that transported the Russians to the gold mine were allegedly seen leaving the premises, driving out on the same street they had driven in on to get to the mine, the witnesses told The Daily Beast. “In the cars were the same people we saw earlier,” said Zaza.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/witnesses-accuse-russias-wagner-group-of-killing-9-chinese-miners-in-central-african-republic?ref=home

Does Vlad really think Xi will give him a pass on this?

[2naSalit]

1. This could be a big problem.

[maxsolomon]

2. When did this happen? Hard to tell from the article.

Vlad probably does think Xi will give him a pass on this, because Xi probably will. Money first.

[Marcuse]

3. A timing hint:

The attack at the Chimbolo coincided with a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping, who has called for “severe punishment” for those behind the attack, and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow this week.

A fallout with China as a result of the Chimbolo killings is something Putin is desperate to avoid. While Russia flounders in a military and economic quagmire over the war in Ukraine, China has emerged as Russia’s biggest diplomatic, financial and technological supporter.

The allegation that Wagner is involved in the attack is likely to put a strain on the relationship between Russia and China, which has continued to provide “non-lethal” aid to Moscow throughout the war, stopping short of delivering weapons—so far.